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Thursday, December 3, 2009

Comcast deal is huge for Philadelphia
Ann Curry, news anchor of NBC "Today," appears on a television monitor outside the studio in New York's Rockefeller Center reporting Comcast Corporation's plan to buy a majority stake in NBC Universal. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

 

One of the few sure things about Comcast Corp.’s taking over entertainment giant NBC Universal Inc. is that it’s going to be good for Philadelphia in many ways.
 
There’s the sizzle of having a Hollywood movie studio and the venerable NBC Nightly News tracing their corporate roots to Comcast headquarters in Center City.
 
The run-up to the announcement of the deal yesterday grabbed headlines for weeks. And as Mayor Nutter noted, “Any announcement that shines a positive national spotlight on Philadelphia can only be good news.”
 
There’s also the potential for economic growth — in jobs at Comcast, and at media and technology-oriented firms that could be drawn into the Comcast orbit. That was the attraction of the firm’s audacious bid for the Walt Disney Co. in 2004, but this time it’s not a Mickey Mouse fantasy.
 
Then, there’s the less tangible impact of such a corporate move on the city and region’s normally conservative business climate. As the region’s only major corporation headquartered here, Comcast stands apart. But even if few corporate leaders locally could hope to match Comcast chief Brian L. Roberts’ determined drive to become the largest player in his media industry, they still can aspire to their own version of being a standout.
 
So there’s good cause for civic pride and celebration of Comcast’s bid to join the entertainment major leagues.
 
The company’s coup certainly is further vindication of the then-controversial decision by Gov. Rendell and state and city lawmakers to grant Comcast a huge tax break to build its office tower at 17th Street and John F. Kennedy Boulevard. With that tax break, the city cemented its ties to Comcast — and now Comcast has put the city firmly on the national media map.
 
But that’s where the picture gets a bit fuzzy, both in terms of the takeover’s impact on the world media landscape as well as whether it proves in the long run to be a boon for Comcast.
 
The chief concern is that the takeover does no harm to consumers. Comcast’s potential to control both the pipeline and so much programming must be scrutinized closely before federal regulators bless the deal.
 
No doubt, cable customers would like to see a reduction in their rates — maybe using some of that $6.5 billion being paid General Electric for a 51 percent ownership interest in NBC Universal. That’s not likely to happen, but subscribers are entitled to assurances that the admittedly limited competition now for video and data services will survive.
 
While it is not a subject for federal regulators, Comcast officials wisely pledged in writing to adopt a hands-off approach to the editorial independence of NBC News, whose local affiliate is NBC10.
 
It’s a decision that helps a hometown crowd root for Comcast’s megamerger to succeed.
 
Posted by Inquirer Editorial Board @ 6:28 PM  Permalink | 3 comments
Comments   
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 9:20 PM, 12/03/2009
    The last thing that happened in Philly was the Mike Douglas Show before dinosaurs roamed the earth. Nobody comes to Philly. Period. Comcast will just jolly people in NYC or LA, no diff than now.
    — ratbag
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 9:34 PM, 12/03/2009
    Ratbag, why such a loser attitude???
    — bhs1944
  • 0 like this / 0 don't   •   Posted 11:43 PM, 12/03/2009
    Ratbag must be a New Yorker....
    — NYC sucks


3 comments
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